Bonding over bocce: Marblehead COA holds second annual jamboree

Wednesday

Like many people Pat Bibbo had an epiphany in the middle of the night that he thought was a great idea. But instead of writing it down and going back to bed, he acted on it -- at 1:30 a.m.

That was the start of the Council on Aging’s North Shore Jamboree, which held its second annual non-tournament Friday, Oct. 20.

“It’s not a tournament because we don’t keep score,” Bibbo said, before whispering that the Marblehead Blue Team was in the lead.

The event brought out teams from Swampscott, Wenham and Peabody, the latter of which brought 16 players.

Joe Scuderi, who played for Wenham and also refereed matches, has been rolling bocce balls since 2002. In the summer he plays three days a week, and in the winter it goes down to one day because they move inside.

“What bocce does is it brings people together,” he said. “Look around, there are people talking, people are together in a harmonious way, they root for each other whether they’re on the same team or not.”

Bibbo said the Marblehead players, which included 19 participants split into three teams, often play five days a week in the summer, including a travel day on Fridays where they play in other communities. He said this year has been particularly good because the mild weather has allowed them to play outdoors longer than in the past.

Since launching the jamboree other COAs have followed suit. Bibbo said not long after their first get-together in 2016, both Swampscott and Wenham asked if they could host a jamboree as well.

Ed “Robbie” Robinson said he likes bocce because it’s relatively easy to play.

“I’ll never get past a certain point in golf, but bocce, there’s no limit,” he said.

Robinson said he first learned to play while living in Palm Desert and was surprised to find so many teams on the North Shore.

Florence Fournier of Peabody said she’s been playing bocce for nearly 20 years.

“It’s competitive and you meet nice people,” she said. “And when you get to be a senior you want to stay active.”